Implications for practice and research

■ In children presenting with vomiting from acute gastroenteritis, ondansetron is a reasonable therapy to allow for successful
oral rehydration.

■ Further research on ondansetron and rehydration should investigate the effects of different dosing regimens, time to cessation
of vomiting after antiemetic administration, as well as a cost-effectiveness analysis.

Context

Acute gastroenteritis (AGE) is a common reason for a child to require emergency care and hospitalisation. In children under
the age of 5 years, dehydration secondary to AGE is responsible for as many as 200 000 hospitalisations in the USA and 24
000 in the UK each year.12